Automatic book-mark.



1N0. 75. PATENTED JAN. 8, 1907,

M. J. GQNTER.

AUTOMATIC BOOK MARK. APPLICATION FILED MAR.6.1906.

"I: NORRIS PETERS c;., WASHINGTON, n. c.

MICHAEL J. CONTER, ,OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

AUTOMATIC BOOK-MARK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 8, 1907.

Original application filed. January 24, 1906, Serial No. 297,549. Divided and this application filed March 6,1906. Serial No. 804,167.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that '1, MICHAEL J. CoNTEn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented new and useful Improvements in Automatic Book-Marks, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

This application is a division of my application, Serial No. 297,549, filed January 24, 1906.

The purpose of this invention is to provide a device adapted tobe attached to a book for automatically keeping the place of the reader as the leaves are turned.

It consists of the features of construction set out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of a portion of an open book having my device operatively attached, one corner of the leaves being broken away to show the device more clearly. Fig. 2 is a section at the line 2 2 on Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a section at the line 3 3 on Fi 2. Fig. 4 is an elevation showing a slight y-modified form. Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4, showing another modification.

The device shown in the drawings is made of a single piece of spring-wire, a portion for a distance from one end of which is folded to form a clasp for engaging the rear cover of .the book. This folding may be done in a great variety of ways, and the invention is not limited to the articular method in which it is shown folded 1n the drawings, except for certain secondary purposes hereinafter pointed out. A portion of the clasp which is to but in open curves extending approximate form the outer member that is to engage outside the rear cover of the book is formed for that purpose by folding the wire A at the points 2 and 3 at right angles to the intermediate ortion '1, the two portions 2 3 running ffom said bends extending parallel for a short distance and then being each reflexed upon themselves at 4 and 5, the bends at these points being preferably not sharp,

y three-quarters of a circle, so that slight secondary bends 6 6 cause the wire to extend as side bars 7 8 of the upper member of the clasp substantially H parallel and directly above the two side bars'of the lower member. The bar 7 being at the end of the Wire may be terminated by coiling it into an eye 7 to prevent a sharp end, which might mar the paper. At the inner end of the other bar 8 the Wire is refiexed in an open loop 8 from which the part 9 extends .thence parallel with the bar 8 at a little distance therefrom nearly to the three-quarter bends 4 5, and it is then bent at 10, so as to extend an arm 11 back across above both bars 7 and '8 toward the back of the book with a sli ht inward trend, the angle at the point 10 eing preferably a little less than a right angle a to give such inward trend. The arm or portion of wire 11 extending thus may-be from one-half or less to three-fourths or more of the width of the page of the book for which the mark is designed, and near theend it is bent at 12, forming a finger 13, which extends ofi at an obtuse angle to the arm 11 and is terminated by coiling the wire in an eye 14 to avoid danger of marring the paper by the sharp end of the wire. The finger 13 is not only set off at an obtuse angle to the arm 1 1, but is also made to trend downward that is, toward the plane of the book-cover held between the two members of the clasp or, referring to the device itself without re-.

gard to the book-cover, it trends toward the plane of the outer member of the clasp, which comprises the portion 1 and the two portions 2 3 at right angles thereto. Preferably the two bars 7 and 8 are connected by a sheetmetal link 15, whose ends are clasped around the said bars, respectively, to keep them from spreading, and preferably, also, the said sheetmetal link is thus engaged by said bars at the inwardly-offset portions 7 8 with which the bars may be formed, as seen in Fig. 1.

When the clasp is applied to the rear cover of a book, as shown in Fig. 1, and thearm 11 is sprung up to lodge the finger 13 u on the face of a leaf between which and t e back cover considerable thickness of the book intervenes, the flexile elasticity of the finger and the torsional elasticity of the wire at the part 9 contribute to give the finger the necessary yielding pressure upon the leaf and to adapt it to accommodate itself to the thickness of the intervening quantity of leaves. In the same mode of use the finger is adapted to ress yieldingly inward toward the head of the book and to yield outward for clearing the leaf by the flexile elasticity of the entire extent of the wire from the finger 13 back around the bends 10, the loop 8 and out to the bend 5. When the two bars 7 and 8 are connected by the link 15 at the offset portions 7 8, as shown, it may be understood from Fig. 3

that the lifting of the finger 13 to embrace a considerable thickness of the book tends to cause the bar 8 to operate somewhat as a rock-shaft actuated for rocking by the short the arm 11 and to the pressure of the finger 13 upon the leaf both the flexile and torofthe wire at the bends 4 and 5.

sional elasticity of both the arms 7 and 8, which are drawn together in this action by the link, as described, causing some torsion I Thus the whole device contributes the elasticity of every part back even to the bars 2 and 3 of the under member of the clasp to the y1eldingness of the finger for its action upon the leaf. The purpose of extending the finger 13 at an obtuse angle to the arm 11 that the upper edge of the leaf when the latter is lifted for turning it is drawn against a sloping finger instead of one extending directly across it, at right angles, and thereby easily crowds the finger out and avoids danger of being torn, as it would be likely to be if lifted against a directly-transverse finger. The same result that is, avoiding danger of tearing the leaf is assisted by causing the finger 13 to extend with a downward trend upon the leaf, so that it bears upon it not throughout its whole length, but only at its terminal eye 14.

In Fig. 4 there is shown the specific form of this device, which is also shown in the said parent application, Serial No. 297 ,549. In this form the arm 11 extends from the outside member of the clasp toward the back of the book and is there formed in a coil 16, from the under side of which the final leafholding arm 11 extends up and forward, passing between the arm 11 and the head of the book and terminates in the leaf-holding finger 17, which rests upon the leaf near the free edge.

In Fig. 5 there is shown a modificatlon in cluding certain of the features of the form shown in- Figs. 2 and 3 and other features of g the form shown in Fig. 1. In this form, Fig.

5, the wire runs from the inner member of the clasp toward the outer edge of the book and is coiled at 16 for elasticity, the wire running from the under side of the coil back toward the back of the book in the arm 11", which terminates in the finger 13, having the peculiarities already described of the similarly-lettered finger of Figs. 1, 2, and 3.

I claim- 1. An automatic book-mark consisting ofa continuous piece of spring-wire having a portion for a distance from one end of the wire folded to form upper and lower members of a clasp for engaging the book-cover, the upper member consisting of two side bars, the wire being refiexed upon itself from the inner end of one of said side bars, such reflex portion extending the length of said side bar, the wire being then bent approximately at right angle and extending across both side bars to form a leaf-holding arm, said arm terminating in an inwardly-trending finger for resting upon the leaf, and a link connecting the two side bars of said upper clasp member.

2-. An automatic book-mark consisting of a continuous piece of spring-wire having a portion for a distance from one end of the wire folded to form upper and lower members of a clasp for engaging the book-cover, the upper member consisting of two side bars and the lower member consisting of the wire running from one to the other of said side bars, the wire being reflexed upon itself from the inner end of one of said side bars, extending back approximately the length of said side bar, the wire being then bent transversely to said side bars and extending thence as a leaf-holding arm and terminating in an inwardlytrending finger for resting upon the leaf, said two side bars of said upper clasp member being offset toward each other between their ends, and a link connecting them at said oil'- set portions.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, at Chicago, Illinois, this 27th day of February, A. D. 1906.

MICHAEL J. CONTER.

Witnesses:

CnAs. S. BURTON. M. GERTRUDE ADY. 

